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Topic: Oriental Orthodox Music (Read 173982 times)

Okay, so I tried to find Psalm 135 in Syriac usage just to hear how they do it and compare it to the Coptic, Arabic, and Greek that have already been posted, and instead of finding that I found Psalm 91 and 121 in Malayalam as chanted by the Orthodox in India. Really, really great stuff, I think. Makes me want to learn Malayalam. How hard can it be...?

Okay, so I tried to find Psalm 135 in Syriac usage just to hear how they do it and compare it to the Coptic, Arabic, and Greek that have already been posted, and instead of finding that I found Psalm 91 and 121 in Malayalam as chanted by the Orthodox in India. Really, really great stuff, I think. Makes me want to learn Malayalam. How hard can it be...?

The Trisagion on the same youtube channel isn't too dissimilar from the Byzantine version in Tone Pl. 1.

Yeah. Many of the chants on that particular channel are noticeably influenced by the Byzantine modes, even when they don't have EO counterparts, like the previously linked Malayalam hymn "Orthodukso", which exalts us to remember the Saints Dioscoros, Severus, Philoxenos, etc., in addition to several saints that are recognized by the EO.

Yeah. Many of the chants on that particular channel are noticeably influenced by the Byzantine modes, even when they don't have EO counterparts, like the previously linked Malayalam hymn "Orthodukso", which exalts us to remember the Saints Dioscoros, Severus, Philoxenos, etc., in addition to several saints that are recognized by the EO.

I think a lot of the similarities might be due to the fact that the Syriac modal system and the Byzantine modal system share a common root. After all the Byzantine Rite is Antiochene in origin.

thanks so much for this, it is becoming my favourite poem this year.but i think the sound quality is better in this one (by the same people):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5NBqTrzsmA&feature=relatedthey uploaded it the previous day.may the Lord give us a brave leader like him and bring times of spiritual refreshing to our brothers in egypt.

hmmm, i think the canadians are a better group (and less depressing lyrics!)we all miss baba shenouda, even those (like me) who didn't meet him (yet!)i especially love all his booklets explaining the Christian faith.he is a great example for us to follow.

To show as proof of me witnessing her undestructed body going to paradise, I also got her handkerchief and belt.And along with the angels, I praised God,on this day of her dormition.

When St.Thomas saw the other disciples,near the tomb of Virgin Mary, to convince them what he saw,he requested them: "Please open her tomb, so that I can also venerate her body, just like you all could."

The disciples opened her tomb and saw it was empty.They were amazed and told St.Thomas,it was here that we laid her body.At that moment, St.Thomas showedthe other disciples her handkerchief and beltand he told them, her body is in paradise.

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Pray for persecuted Christians, especially in Serbian Kosovo and Raška, Egypt and Syria

If you like Abeer Nehme, maybe try Ghada Shbeir. I don't think she's Orthodox (Maronite, I think), but she did a nice CD of unaccompanied Syriac chant a few years ago that's actually available via Amazon at a decent price (it's just called "Chants Syriaques", IIRC). This song isn't on it, but it's pretty interesting: "In Bethlehem" - Aramaic lullaby of St. Mary to the new-born Christ (so says the description; I've never heard this tradition before)

If you like Abeer Nehme, maybe try Ghada Shbeir. I don't think she's Orthodox (Maronite, I think), but she did a nice CD of unaccompanied Syriac chant a few years ago that's actually available via Amazon at a decent price (it's just called "Chants Syriaques", IIRC). This song isn't on it, but it's pretty interesting: "In Bethlehem" - Aramaic lullaby of St. Mary to the new-born Christ (so says the description; I've never heard this tradition before)

She's also very good. One of my all time favorites is Sister Marie Kerouz (you've probably heard of her), she was born a Maronite but is a Melkite -Greek Catholic Nun. She has an amazing ability being able to sing both European Classical pieces and Oriental Classical music and Oriental chant (Syriac and Byzantine) with one of the best voices that I've heard.

I've never been able to get into Sr. Marie Keyrouz. I've tried on numerous occasions. Her Byzantine material isn't too bad, to my untrained ears, but her Syriac stuff just grates on me. Oddly enough, I have Maronite friends who say the same thing (though they also usually say that it's impossible to find good Maronite chant, especially after the start of the civil war when things really started going downhill, pastorally-speaking, and the motivation/authority needed to pass on the authentic chant was scattered to the wind, to be replaced by awful modern "Arabic Neo-Maronite" arrangements, a la Fr. Louis Hage and the Choral Department of the Universite Saint Esprit Kaslik in their terrible late 1970s recordings). I think she sounds right at home with the Italian hymn, though. Very pretty. Thanks for sharing.

Abeer Nehme, Ghada Shbeir - beautiful voices! Earlier I knew only the first one, so thanks dzheremi for posting the video presenting the second one!

As for Sister Marie Kerouz, I have similar feelings as dzheremi. Maybe, because actually I prefer male (sometimes mixed) voices, however there are some exceptions like my compatriot Divna Ljubojević. But for me, sr. Kerouz sounds too much Western

I also don't like new Maronite arrangements. Arabic languages is so beautiful and for me these new arrangements doesn't suit to this language and are not so deep. However, I like some recordings from this site: http://www.jiehonline.com/pweek09.html I know there are passion hymns, but I understand meaning only of a few of them, as my Arabic is very poor.

You can find the words at places like this page, but without the opening part you hear in that video, so it's not complete. The missing words are:

We worship the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit - Hail to the Church, the house of the angelsHail to the Virgin who gave birth to our Savior - Hail to Gabriel who announced to her the good newsHail to Michael the Archangel - Hail the twenty-four presbytersHail to the Cherubim, hail to the Seraphim - Hail to all the hosts of the heavensHail to John, the great forerunner - Hail to the twelve apostlesHail to our father Mark the Evangelist - the destroyer of idolsHail to Stephen, the first martyr - Hail to George, the morning starHail to the whole choir of the martyrs - Hail to Abba Anthony and the three MacariiHail to the whole choir of the cross-bearers - Hail to all the saints who have pleased the LordThrough their prayers, O Christ our King, have mercy upon us in Your kingdom

Only pray for me, that God would give me both inward and outward strength, that I may not only speak, but truly will; and that I may not merely be called a Christian, but really be found to be one. St.Ignatius of Antioch.Epistle to the Romans.

The Tur Abdin Timeline - A timeline of Tur Abdin (Syriac for "the Mountain of the Servants [of God]"), the heartland of the Syriac Orthodox Christians, a hilly region located in upper Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates.

I've enjoyed especially the third one - do you have a translation of it into English (I know that all the time I ask about the lyrics - but I love Oriental Orthodox music and I want to know the meaning of these hymns and songs)? I understand only one word - "Qadish" means "Holy". I know that one of Syriac Christmas hymns is called "Halel Halel" - is the link this hymn?

« Last Edit: September 11, 2012, 04:17:27 PM by Dominika »

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Pray for persecuted Christians, especially in Serbian Kosovo and Raška, Egypt and Syria

I've enjoyed especially the third one - do you have a translation of it into English (I know that all the time I ask about the lyrics - but I love Oriental Orthodox music and I want to know the meaning of these hymns and songs)? I understand only one word - "Qadish" means "Holy". I know that one of Syriac Christmas hymns is called "Halel Halel" - is the link this hymn?

The Tur Abdin Timeline - A timeline of Tur Abdin (Syriac for "the Mountain of the Servants [of God]"), the heartland of the Syriac Orthodox Christians, a hilly region located in upper Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates.

Dominika, are you perhaps thinking of this Maronite Catholic hymn? That one is pretty well-known even among non-Maronites like me, since it was included on the Turkish-released 2CD collection of Syriac Church and secular music "Suryaniler" a few years ago (there are so few recordings released for general consumption like that that I pick up whatever I can find that is in Syriac, whether it is Orthodox or not; "Suryaniler" has both Orthodox and Catholic hymns). I don't know if it shares a text or a melody with any Syriac Orthodox hymn. I have found some hymns shared in common by the Maronites and the Orthodox, but they are the basic ones by St. Ephrem like you would expect, and I don't know if this is one of them. It would help if I spoke the language...maybe someday!

Dominika, are you perhaps thinking of this Maronite Catholic hymn? That one is pretty well-known even among non-Maronites like me, since it was included on the Turkish-released 2CD collection of Syriac Church and secular music "Suryaniler" a few years ago (there are so few recordings released for general consumption like that that I pick up whatever I can find that is in Syriac, whether it is Orthodox or not; "Suryaniler" has both Orthodox and Catholic hymns). I don't know if it shares a text or a melody with any Syriac Orthodox hymn. I have found some hymns shared in common by the Maronites and the Orthodox, but they are the basic ones by St. Ephrem like you would expect, and I don't know if this is one of them. It would help if I spoke the language...maybe someday!

I'd forgotten how this hymns sounds,now thanks to you I've recalled it. I think the lyrics of both hymns can be very similar - as you've mentioned, many Maronite hymns are based on St. Ephrem works. One of the hymns that are used in botch Churches, also sung on the Nativity, is "Shoubho Lhaw Qolo".

I think I'll add to all the great Syriac hymns we have here with a great recording of Fr. M. P. George singing Bak'Dus Qudishin, a song commemorating the departed clergy.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJfcY8acX7w

Suryoyo All-Stars - Tralfo Shnayo (2000 years), this isn't a Church song but it is dedicated to all Christian minorities around the world (mostly focused on the Genocide almost 100 years ago). It's also a song where you hear both the spoken Syriac and Arabic...

The Tur Abdin Timeline - A timeline of Tur Abdin (Syriac for "the Mountain of the Servants [of God]"), the heartland of the Syriac Orthodox Christians, a hilly region located in upper Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates.

is this 'our Father who is in heaven'?sounds a bit familiar, like as if i spend too much time on this website and am now recognising syriac!

Indeed it is, just as dzheremi said. So true, I have the melody always in my head now, hopefully one day to learn the Syriac words. What's amazing is this is fairly close, understanding some difference between 1st century Palestinian Aramaic & later West Syriac, to the very words Our Lord spoke.

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"Be oppressed, rather than the oppressor. Be gentle, rather than zealous. Lay hold of goodness, rather than justice." -St. Isaac of Nineveh

“I returned to the Coptic Orthodox Church with affection, finding in her our tormented and broken history“. -Salama Moussa